“Are you two going home?” He asked, looking pointedly at my purse that was hooked on my arm.

I nodded. “We were.”

No explanations from me, Mister!

“Are you two going to drive?” He asked after I didn’t continue.

I raised a condescending eyebrow at him. “I’m twenty six, Michael. I know how to take care of myself. Which was why we’d planned to walk since our house isn’t but five minutes from here.”

He pursed his lips, and I assumed it was so he wouldn’t laugh, but what did I know?

The man could be pissed.

I didn’t know Michael well.

Then a thought struck me.

And my mouth got away from me.

“You know,” I said hurriedly. “Joslin’s a bitch. Nikki’s wayyyyy,” I exaggerated the ‘way’ with an exaggerated sweep of my hand. “Nicer. And prettier. And less of a bitch. By like, nearly a hundred times or more. And Joslin cheats on her boyfriends with every man in the hospital. I’m pretty sure that Nikki is a virgin. And if she isn’t, then really, really inexperienced.”

Michael’s face completely shut down.

No more Mr. Nice Guy.

Uh-oh.

Time to retreat.

“Well, I’ll see you later,” I said, taking Paxton’s hand on the way past him.

Michael’s energy seemed to sear my skin as I moved past him, dragging Paxton the entire way.

My legs felt super light as I walked to the door, very aware that I still had the attention of the other four men in the back of the room, as well as the one still at my back.

“Oh, my God, Paxton. Hurry up or they’ll make us stay!” I urged hurriedly.

Paxton stopped smiling and waving at people as we passed, and started forward as he said, “I don’t know why you’re hurrying. Wouldn’t it be better to act like you’ve moved on? What will running away accomplish?”

“It’ll accomplish me not seeing Bennett when he gets here. Something I know they’re going to make happen. I already see one of them on the phone,” I snapped.

I’d nearly made it to the door when he stepped through the door.

Dressed to the nines in his police uniform, my heart skipped a beat.

But then it restarted the next moment when I caught the sight of the woman he was holding the door open for a beautiful blonde woman that I’d never seen before.

He was on the phone, and his eyes were downcast.

But his hand was placed possessively on her hip, and he was holding the door open with the other while his phone was squeezed between his ear and his shoulder.

My heart stopped and I gasped.

He looked up, saw me, and didn’t show the least bit of understanding.

He looked surprised to see me, but that was it.

Not regretful that I’d caught him with someone else.

Not anything.

He opened his mouth to say something, but I didn’t want to hear what he had to say. Not now, and not ever.

Turning around on my heel, I dashed around Paxton and made a break for it down the back hallway. Then straight the fuck out the door.

And I can’t say that what I did next was very nice of me.

In fact, it was downright mean and bad. And possibly very illegal.

Taking my keys from my purse, I unfolded my Swiss Army Knife, and sank it into Bennett’s front tire as I passed.

The air escaped the small hole with a low hiss, and I giggled before I started hurrying down the sidewalk that would lead me to my house three blocks away.

My mind was a whirlwind as I walked, which was why when I got on my street, I didn’t realize that there was something wrong with my house until I’d nearly made it two houses down from it.

And the current reason there was something wrong with it was due to the stupid bitch on the front lawn with a can of spray paint in one hand, and a jug of bleach in the other.

“What the fuck?” I yelled, sprinting forward until I came face to face with the stupid bitch who continuously made a fool of me. “What are you doing at my house?”

***

Bennett

“Thanks for bringing me, Bennett. I appreciate it!” Iris said, smiling sweetly at me.

Iris was the wife of Detective O’Keefe, another one of the men receiving an award at tonight’s police banquet.

I’d had to stay for pictures, as had she for being the event coordinator, while the other members of the SWAT team had gotten off nearly an hour before.

“Your phone’s beeping,” Iris said pointedly.

I’d ignored the call from Lennox, knowing what she had to say to me probably wasn’t going to be nice.

I didn’t doubt for a second that she was mad.

Hell, I was still mad.

But I was also busy, and I should’ve called but it’d been the furthest thing from my mind. Especially when Corrinne did the one thing I knew she was going to do.

File for partial custody of Reagan, even though I’d had her money returned within a day of them taking it.

”No problem,” I muttered. “Although, I wouldn’t have minded taking you home,” I said tiredly.

Iris sniffed delicately. “OK knows where I’m at. He’ll come for me when he’s ready.”

OK was short for O’Keefe, and a nickname she called her husband.

I had dinner with the couple and their kids multiple times since I’d joined the department, and their daughter and mine had become really good friends.

Effectively making it to where we saw a lot of each other.

“Check your phone,” Iris laughed when it beeped again.

Three calls in the last twenty minutes.

What the fuck?

Sighing, I took the phone out to listen to the voicemail messages.

“You better get down here. Your woman’s with another man,” Michael’s deep voice rumbled before he abruptly hung up.

Brow’s lowering, I listened to the next one.

“Hello. My name is Lennox Jane. You call me Nox. I’m twenty…something. I have brown hair with auburn highlights, and I wear makeup because it makes me happy. You are Bennett Alvarez, the man that had good sex with me. But I just wanted you to know, that that is over. No more Nox nookie for you. Say bye bye to the pussy, because you’ll never see it again. And you suck. And I’m keeping that t-shirt I stole from you. And I have your shoes at my place, but I let Cola chew on them because you’re mean. Bye.”

I laughed. Flat out. Full force.

That woman.

The last one was from just moments ago when I was getting out of my truck.

As I opened the door to the bar where I was meeting the men from work, I started listening to the last voicemail.

“Your girl’s leaving, and if I had to guess, she’s pretty pissed at you. If you don’t want her to walk, let me know and I’ll give her a…”

I lost my train of thought when I looked up to a broken hearted gasp.

Lennox, with Paxton at her back, was staring at me in horror.

She looked like I’d ripped her heart out and stomped on it in front of her.

When I went to reach for her, Iris stepped into my path inadvertently, and started jabbering about what she was going to have to eat.

All the while she didn’t realize what was happening right in front of her.

I placed my hand on her hip to move her and tried to get a word in, but she just spoke over me about the hamburger she was going to devour.

Lennox’s eyes went down to my hand on Iris’ hip, and her eyes welled with tears before she turned and ran in the opposite direction toward the bathroom.

Paxton looked at me like he wanted to kill me, and I held my hands up.

“It’s only a friend! She’s married to someone else who’s meeting her here in an hour!” I yelled at him before he said something that’d get him into trouble.

Paxton finally stepped aside which allowed a very confused Iris to walk into the bar.

“What?” She asked in confusion.

I caught Downy’s eye who’d just gotten to the bar for a refill and said, “Can you handle that?” As I passed.

I didn’t wait for him to answer yes or no.

I knew Lennox must be pissed, or hurting. Or possibly both.